Reign from Ball Family Farms x Viola via Evergreen Santa Ana on 9/19/2020 (Huge shout out to the whole Ball Family Farms team for making it happen!). THC tested out to 27.7%. This was gifted to me but goes for $53 plus tax on the Evergreen menu but I’ve seen it for $57 out the door at Catalyst. Ball Family Farms has put out some of my favorite strains of the past couple years, so when I heard they had a new collaboration with Viola in the works, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on some and see what’s good. The surface of these fairly dense buds is a patchwork of moss and seafoam greens with frequent rashes of deep rich aubergine and byzantium, coupled with wisps of golden brown pistils, all of which is heavily flocked in an abundance of egg cream colored triches.

The nose out of the jar has a candy sweetness with a touch of herbal mustiness underneath. Busting open a bud that sugary candy sweetness gets louder and brings forth a piney freshness that’s vaguely reminiscent of an old school fruit Mentos. Breaking it down by hand, it leaves my fingers absolutely coated in triches and smelling like muted Pine-sol, where the grinds themselves have a fruity candy sweetness that hits me like a watermelon jolly rancher. The dry pull on the jay has a strong sugar sweetness that completely blows out the rest of the pallet. The inhale is smooth and on the joint has a sugar sweet floral quality whereas the bong is surprisingly nondescript. The exhale on the joint is a muted semi-sweet floral freshness with a lightly savory backend, where the bong is more of a light candy floral with a hint of cream. The headchange comes on quick and put a heaviness in my eyes near immediately. On my joint walk I noticed that my torso started to feel lighter, and the top part of my body in general was floaty in that way that puts a little bounce in your step. There’s a fun imaginative energy that came with it as well but given some time, a weight settled into my body encouraging me to stay sedentary, yet my mind remained fully active and on this happy creative kick. I will say that when I did sit down to work, I found myself spacing out here and there, but after a quick trip to the stratosphere I’d typically return no worse for wear and able to jump in where I left off. Despite it not being the most flavorful experience I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Reign, it functions well as a feel good any time smoke that compliments the sorts of activities you do on days where it’s best to stay inside and that’s definitely something a lot of us are doing these days, and will continue to do as winter sets in. While I’m not exactly chomping at the bit to get my hands on more, I could definitely see myself copping again at some point, especially if I were headed to the mountains for a long snowy indoor weekend. Excellent job once again Ball Family Farms, you guys are consistently putting out some solid heat and while Daniel Larusso still remains my favorite pull from your library, I have no doubt it could be dethroned by your near future efforts. Keep up the fantastic work!

Miyagi-Do (sample) from Ball Family Farms received on 4/13/2020. No info on the jar but from what I’ve seen THC has tested out to about 27%. This sample was gifted to me but at the time of this writing it’s currently going for $42 out the door at Connected Belmont Shore. If you took all the conversations I had about my favorite strains of the past year you would find a single constant in everyone them, my love for Daniel Larusso from Ball Family Farms. So when they asked me to evaluate their new strain Miyagi-Do, I was so stoked I was on board and buckled in before they could finish printing the boarding pass. These dense buds are a stunning cacophony of rapidly shifting colors ranging from lime and forest greens to midnight blues and deep rich purples coupled with sporadic bunches of tightly wound copper pistils and a healthy army of yellowing triches with what I’m starting to call “that bird spike look”.

The nose out of the jar is a sweet musty spice with hints of mint cream and just a touch of lemon on the backend. On busting open a bud the sweetness and mint cream take centerstage and fight for the spotlight leaving no room for any other scents to make themselves known. When breaking it down by hand it leaves a pleasant resin on the fingers that smells of mint and pine. The grinds have that sweet mint cream in spades and the mint is so strong that it has a near eucalyptus quality that gives me minor Vic’s Vapor Rub vibes. The dry pull on the joint comes with a sweet mint cream coupled with fuel and has a creamy menthol aftertaste. The inhale is smooth and has a very fresh sensation on the joint where as the bong has more of a sweet hashy floral aspect to it. The exhale on the joint is a mix of sweet cream and hash with a eucalyptus like tang where the bong is more of a floral mint cream. Cross checking the flavors on my MV1 from @ghostvapesofficial at 170c you get a heavily floral and fresh experience, the best way to explain it is that it tastes like pinesol smells and is very intense at low temps, to the point it actually leaves a cool sensation on the tongue. The headchange comes on quick and with a healthy thwap that will leave you dazed. As soon as the smoke is leaving your mouth on the first hit you’ll feel your eyes glaze and some weight settle into your shoulders. As the effects creep in you’ll start to lose track of time, you’ll get lost in your thoughts and while things might be crystal clear in your mind, you struggle to find the right words as you realize that part of your cognition has been grappled into complete submission. Much like facing the wrath of Miyagi-Do in real life, this batch will leave wide eyed and slack jawed, unable to focus as your conscious is rocketed through a myriad of rapid fire vignettes created by your own mind only to snap back to reality on occasion with a cartoonish shake of the head before shortly losing touch once again. I absolutely loved this batch of Miyagi-Do and for the killer ticket it’s currently going for at Connected Belmont Shore I am fighting the urge to hop in my car right now to be there when they open to cop some more. This was yet another absolute banger from the awesome folks at Ball Family Farms, keep up the amazing work, I can’t wait to see what you guys put out next!

Bonzai from Ball Family Farms via Evergreen in Santa Ana on 12/21/19. THC tested out to 19.9%. Currently selling at Connected for $55 out the door. Ball Family Farms put out one of my favorite strains of 2019, Daniel Larusso, so when I heard they had something new coming down the line I knew I had to get my hands on it. The surface of these delicately structured buds is mostly comprised of a pear green with lime accents and the occasional forest green lilt, a smattering of burnt auburn pistils, all frosted under a healthy layer of yellowing triches.

The nose out of the jar hits me like lemon zest with a musty orange back end. Busting open a bud the citrus scents combine into a sweet natural orange that smells unique when compared to the mass amounts of lemon lime candy herb that’s prevalent in todays marketplace. When breaking it down by hand, that sweet natural orange gets even louder, while that lemon makes a come back but is relegated to the background. It’s also so sticky that the small bits of grounds cling to the tips of your fingers and make you fight some to rub them clean. The dry pull on the jay, unsurprisingly, tastes of sugar sweet orange and almost has an orange juice like aftertaste. The inhale was smooth but muted on the flavor end, I didn’t get much of a taste off the joint, but from the bong I picked up on this light citric acid burn on the tongue. On the exhale I get a burnt orange taste from the joint and from the bong it’s more of a a natural musty orange, lacking that sweetness from the dry pull, but having a powerful aftertaste that lingers for a minute or two after smoking. Cross checking the flavor on my MV1 from @ghostvapesofficial I catch a really mild orange on the inhale, and a very zesty orange aftertaste that’s similar to biting into an orange without peeling it, but not quite as intense or traumatic. The headchange comes on quick and brings a bit of energy with it but also has a slap that can leave you spacey if you aren’t intensely focused. It lacks that racy edge I look for in an early morning sativa but functions nicely as a mid to late day smoke as long as you don’t mind losing track of what you’re doing on occasion. The ticket is just a tad higher than a lot of really solid sativas out there so that would be my only point of hesitation when considering picking this up again. Excellent work Ball Family Farms, you guys are killing it and I can’t wait to see what you put out next!

Daniel Larusso Cannon (sample) from Ball Family Farms and The Cannon Co. I have been wanting to get my hands on a Cannon for a while now and when I saw they put one together with one of my favorite strains of the year, Daniel Larusso, I made a Christmas wish that it would show up in my stocking. While that didn’t exactly happen, the cool folks at Ball Family Farms were kind enough to grant my wish, so I thought I’d do a quick write up on my first Cannon experience. This particular cannon was comprised of 1.3g of Daniel Larusso with Lemon Cherry Gelato Sugar corkscrewed on the paper around the core.

The scent from the outside had a deep gas with a rubber back end that reminded me of the way good old school hash would smell. On the dry pull I picked up a on delicious sweet lemon fuel taste that left a minty sensation on the lips. On lighting the J I immediately recognized that signature earthy hash like taste that made me say “Yup, that’s the Larusso!” out loud to myself. It smoked smooth, flavorful, and even all the way down to the glass tip. By the time I was half way through the cannon I was already being yelled at to sweep the leg as I was losing the battle. By the end I was crane kicked right in the brain and back into the couch, ready to watch a movie and call it a night. I really enjoyed this first flight with the Cannon Co. I’m sure the material used plays a big part of having a positive experience but if this sample is on par with the quality of product they put our regularly then their excellent reputation is definitely well deserved. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on another Cannon when the opportunity presents itself. Excellent work to the folks at the Cannon Co and thank you once again to the folks at Ball Family Farms for the chance to give it a try and for always putting out that solid heat!

Daniel Larusso from Ball Family Farms via Connected Santa Ana on 7/9/19. THC tested out to 28.42%. Purchased for $65 after tax. Being a child of the 80’s I loved the Karate Kid, so when I saw Ball Family Farms named their strain Daniel Larusso, I knew I was going to have go get my hands on some. Despite the occasional tiny nanner, this herb is really fantastic looking. Rich purple hues comprise the surface as an abundance deep auburn pistils, almost looking like fingers purposely grasping the bud, claw their way across the budscape.

The nose comes off as minty and spicy, more specifically, I feel like I pick up on notes of pepper. The headchange is fantastic. It comes on fast and quick, it’s like a Crain Kick to the brain, and it leaves you fairly stunned at first. After the initial hit, it steadies out into an even hybrid experience, and doesn’t leave you too locked up nor spacey. It’s a great afternoon smoke if you’re headed out to lunch, or the movies with friends, or even out for a hike. It’s perfect for those occasions where you’re short on time and need to get ripped quick before heading out because it thwacks in a certain way that’s just inherently satisfying. This was a outstanding first experience with Ball Family Farms and I’m extremely interested to see what they put out next.